


with blossoms in her hair

by Qzil



Series: SPN Rarepair Bingo [6]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-22
Updated: 2016-03-22
Packaged: 2018-05-28 08:08:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6321697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Qzil/pseuds/Qzil
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ruby, a florist, gains an admirer in the form of Castiel, who attempts to court her using flower language.</p>
            </blockquote>





	with blossoms in her hair

**Author's Note:**

> For the spnrarepair bingo prompt 'you keep buying one flower from my store and giving it back to me'

Ruby sighed, cracked her back, and opened her stand for the day. Prom season was near at hand, which meant hours upon hours of making corsages and dealing with the slew of new hires she’d had to bring in to handle the demand. Most of them were pretty useless and wouldn’t last beyond the season, but a few were promising, which gave Ruby a small glimmer of hope.

But for now, she was the only one in the store. Ruby preferred being by herself at opening time. She liked the quiet, liked being able to sit still and breathe in the smell of the flowers around her without the distraction of other people.

That morning, she parked herself behind the counter with her book. She had a long list of things to do today. There was an arrangement that she had to work on for a funeral, and another three for a wedding, but she took her peaceful hour, anyway. She’d done this every morning for as long as she could remember, ever since she’d taken over her family’s small flower store.

Originally, Ruby hadn’t wanted to be a florist. She’d grown up in the apartment above the shop, which was sandwiched between a bakery and a butcher, and had spent the first few years of her childhood being dragged into the shop below. Once she’d gotten older and had started going to school, she hadn’t wanted anything to do with the flower shop. But her mother had always told her that she’d had a real talent for flower arranging, and one thing had led to another, until she’d taken over the shop when her parents decided to retire and decamp to Florida.

The bell jingled and the door opened, bringing in the smell of fresh bread from the bakery next door and sending the smell of flowers out the door. Looking up, Ruby groaned inwardly when she saw who it was.

Messy black hair. Impossibly blue eyes. Stubble on his square jaw as if he hadn’t shaved. A well-cared for suit and tan trenchcoat. A blue tie on backward, as if he’d been rushing in the morning and couldn’t be bothered to fix it.

The man had been coming in every day for the last week, buying a flower, and then _giving it back to her._

At first, she’d thought it was kind of cute. But after a couple of days, Ruby was simply frustrated. He was cute, sure, and she wouldn’t have minded taking a ride, as it had been far too long since she’d had a real, living person in her bed instead of her vibrator. But the man never said anything, not even when she rung him up, and never looked her in the eyes when he shyly handed the flower back to her. She didn’t even know his name, although she knew that he knew hers, since she (mostly) wore a nametag over her apron.

Putting aside her book, Ruby waited for him to pick his flower of the day, curious as to what he’d choose.

The man made his selection and strode toward the counter. Ruby raised her eyebrows, rang him up, took his money, and held her hand out for the flower, expectant.

As always, the man pressed the flower into her hand.

“I’m Castiel,” he blurted, eyes suddenly raising to meet hers. His cheeks were smeared with red, and his ears as well.

“Ruby,” she said.

“I know,” he said. “Have a good day.”

With that, he turned and ran out of her store. Ruby raised the flower to her nose and inhaled.

Hibiscus was the flower of the day. Instead of putting it near the cash register, as she usually did with the man’s offerings, Ruby tucked the flower behind her ear and reached under the desk for her notebook. She opened her list and pulled the cap off the pen.

The top of the page was simply labeled _Mystery Man._ Ruby crossed it out and wrote _Castiel_ in the leftover space, hoping that she’d spelled it right. Underneath, she recorded the day’s flower, and then reached for her handbook. Rifling through it, she found hibiscus and delicately scrawled the meaning of the flower down next to the name.

She’d been doing it with all the flowers he’d brought her, and she had a pretty good list.

_Daisy -- innocence_

_Jasmine -- grace, elegance_

_Carnation, white -- sweet and lovely_

_Ranunculus -- radiant_

_Iris -- hope_

_Hibiscus -- delicate beauty_

Ruby smiled and closed the book. She knew right away that her mystery man was crushing on her, and each flower he gave her only confirmed it. She wanted to laugh at his poor attempts at flirting, but then, she was sure that he knew she knew the meanings behind all the flowers he gave her.

Ruby touched the hibiscus tucked into her hair and smiled.

.

The next morning, she was ready. The man--Castiel--strolled into her shop, looking nervous as ever. Before he could touch any of her displays, she strolled around the desk and held her hand out.

“Jonquil,” she said. “Affection returned.”

Castiel blushed again, and Ruby swallowed the urge to laugh. He took the flower from her gently, his fingers brushing over the delicate petals.

“You know, you could’ve come up with a better idea than giving flowers to a florist,” she teased. Castiel blushed deeper.

“Well, you figured it out, didn’t you?” he muttered. This time, Ruby did laugh. Her admirer seemed to be on the shy side, but she figured she could work with that. She’d coaxed shy boys out of their shells before, and she always had fun doing it.

“I close at three on Sundays,” she told him. “The bakery doesn’t close until five. They’ll have some good cupcakes, if you wanna grab some.”

Castiel smiled at her and fingered the Jonquil flower. “I’d like that.”

 


End file.
